Pick counter



J H. L. SPAUNBURG 2,340,025

PICK COUNTER ori inal Filed Jan. 28, 1938 Patented Jan. 25, 1944 rrcx comma Harvey L. Spaunburg, West Hartford, Conn., assignor to Veeder-Root Incorporated, a corporation of Connecticut Original application January 28, 1938, Serial No.

187,355. Divided and this application September 12, 1940, Serial No. 356.431

1 Claim.

My invention relates to resettable pick counters and is a division of my copending application Serial No. 187,355, filed January 28, 1938, and now abandoned.

It has heretofore been proposed to prevent advancement of the count of a pick counter by a sharp blow on the resetting member through providing a clutch between the resetting member and the resetting shaft. However, in this construction, the mechanism has been such that while, as heretofore, preventing advancement of the counter wheels by a blow when the counter is looked, a new difficulty has been encountered; this structure making it possible for the counter wheels thus to be advanced by a blow when the counter is unlocked. This is due to the fact that the clutch has been under control of the key, and that the clutch mechanism has been such that the clutch elements, while entirely separated when the counter is locked, have been engageable to produce a positive driving connection when the key is operated to unlock the counter. As a result, while a dishonest operator without a key cannot advance this counter fraudulently by hammering the resetting member, another dishonest operator who obtains a key can so ad- Vance it by merely unlocking the counter, striking the resetting member a blow to advance the count while holding the shaft against advance, 5

and then re-locking the counter so that no one knows what has happened.

My invention has among its objects to provide an improved pick counter of the blow-proof type which is blow-proof both when the counter is locked and unlocked and which free from the above objections.

A further object of my invention is to provide such an improved counter including a clutch and wherein the clutch, as distinguished from being intermittently connected, is constantly connected, and yet wherein the elements of the clutch can not be brought into positive engagement in such manner as to transmit the impact of a blow on the resetting member to the resetting shaft.

A still further object of my invention is to provide such improved operative connections between the reset operating member and the resetting shaft whereby, while obtaining these advantages, the construction is such as to be readily and inexpensively applied to standard counters without change in the mechanism within the counter casing or in any way requiring the use of special mechanism within said casing.

These and other objects and advantages of my is, accordingly,

improved construction will, however, hereinafter more fully appear.

In the accompanying drawing I have shown for purposes of illustration one embodiment which my invention may assume in practice.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a double locked pick counter having my improvements; part of the counter being broken away to facilitate illustration and certain parts being shown in section;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a perspective View showing the parts of the clutch separated, but in their correct relation;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on line 6-6 of Fig. 1;

Fig. '7 is a greatly enlarged sectional detail showing one of the recesses in the friction disc and a cooperating projection or detent on the friction plate, and

Fig. 8 is a sectional view on line 8-8 of Fig. 1 with parts broken away to illustrate details of a counter wheel clutch and the resetting elements associated therewith; the wheel being shown in zero position.

In this illustrative construction, I have shown a pick counter including a rectangular casing I, open at the top, having a cover 2 forming a closure for the open top, and including two counter mechanisms located in side by side relation therein, generally indicated at A and B, each having a resetting shaft 3 on which a plurality of operatively connected counting units 4 are rotatably mounted.

Locking mechanism is provided in the casing, including a key operated lock 5 controlling a locking bar 6 disposed transversely to and controlling the operation of the resetting shafts 3, .and improved clutch means, generally indicated at C, is also provided between the resetting shafts 3 and the usual manually rotatable wing nuts 1 external of the casing.

The counters A and B are identical, and, accordingly, a description of the counter A will sufiice. The resetting shaft 3 of the counter is journaled in bosses 8 in the end walls of the casing, one of which is shown in Fig. 2, and is provided with the usual longitudinal resetting groove 9 which cooperates with resetting pawls l0 '(Fig. 8) in the counting units 4, in a usual manner. The counting units 4 are of a usual construction including a number wheel I l carrying a two-tooth gear l2 and having a twenty-tooth gear 'l3'rotat-'- ably mounted on a hub thereof and connected thereto through a. clutch connection including a cup-shaped ratchet l4 and spring urged pawls it; the usual transfer pinion It: being provided to connect the proximate twenty-tooth and twotooth gears of adjacent counting units.

A rotatablelockingrnember H is carried on the resetting shaft 3 having a key which enters the groove 9 so that the locking member rotates with the shaft. A sleeve 13 of the locking member abuts a flat key I9 adjacent the left-;han d boss 8 having a bifurcated lower end 29] disposed in an annular groove 2| in.:;the;shaf-t 3 forpositioning the shaft against axialmovement in @the casing. The locking member ll also has an annular flange 22 provided withteeth .23 whichcooperate with a pawl 23a carried by the transfer pinion shaft 16a for preventing reverse rotation of the resetting shaft in certain positions of the latter. This flange also serves to position the lock nebar 6 ,(Eigfi wh ch ve es th lo king portion 24 of the member and ,is positioned beeen thefl n e 22 and washers ab ttin the sh u denfor d yrthelockin p t o a spa ing sleeve 26being-provided between these washers and the highest order counting unit. The ock n p rtio 1 h chis generally a u isqprovidedwith-right vangularly related fiat surfaces 21 on its-circumference which are engaged y corresp ndin .ans a ly related fiat s r ces ,-28-on the locking bar 6 when the latter is moved into locking position.

A ,key operated lock is provided between the counters A,,a;nd 13 having a rotatable barrel 30 journaled .in a boss 3| ,on the casing end wall andicarrying a washer-shaped cam 32 having a key 33 projecting into the key slot 34 in thebarrel. The cam 32has. a no se 35 which acts on the ba to slid h lat r i op s di t ons upon rr tationof Lthe lock barrel between locked an im ook dp sitions; theiocked an u k d positions of the bar being shown in fullanddotted lines respectively in Fig- 6. Thisdocking structu ene seaf mswn'o a to this invention; bein described an im d :inmy t nt No- 2, 9 5 o March 12.219 9.

Improved means are provided between the -win,g;nut and the resetting shaft 3 .for transmitting-a manually applied resetting rotation of .the wing ,nut to the shaft while preventing the :transrnissionof force thereto due to a blow on the wing put. The clutch C and the wing nut 1 are carried onthe resetting shaft 3 externally of the easing ,l. ,Referring to ru 2, it will be noted that the casing Lisprovided with an annular external finishedsurface 44 forming a slight recess concentric with the resetting shaft 3 which provides abearingfor ahub .45 secured by a pin .43 to the shaft; theends of thepin at ,(Fig. 3) being ground off-flush with the circumference of the hub. The hub Adhasa closed end, spacedfrom the end of shaft 3, having an axial passage therethrough s llerfl hanlsh i .3 t rece e a ud Th stud 48 has an enlarged head t!) of the same diameter as shaft 3, which completely fills the space between the end wall of the hub and the shaft and projects through the aperture M a substantial distance. The hub also'has integral therewith friction disc 5% which lies close 1 the end Wall of th ca g 5, nd s shown mo t clearly in F1 9 is pr ided w h sp recesses 5 i arranged radially on the outer face thereof and having beveled side walls 52; the shape of thesebeveled walls being clearly shown ilig.7..

A friction plate 53 is journaled on the hub 45 adjacent the friction disc 50 and is provided with cooperating pressed-out projections 54, one of which is provided for each of the recesses 5| in the friction disc. It will be noted from Fig. 7 that these projections, which are receivable in the recesses 5|, are generally arcuate in configurationand are provided with cut away flat faces 55 in the plane of the friction disc which are ,hence parallel with the bottom of the recesses 5.l,cbut are slightly spaced therefrom. The friction plate 53 is constantly pressed into engagement with the friction disc 50 by means of a coiled spring :56 which bears against the outer face of the plate on one end and against an inside face of a housing 5'! at its other end. The housing ;has an annular external cover portion 58 which encloses the spring, friction plate, and

sleeve '60, and stud d8 so that the wing nut, stud,

and housing rotate as a unit. It will be noted, however, that by reason of thehead 43 within the closed end of hub '45, the unit is held against displacement from this hub on which it is journaled. As shown most clearly'in Figs. 3 and 5, the friction plate 53 is provided with three angularly related ears 65 which engage flat builtup portions '68 on the inside of the portion 53 so that the friction plate 53 rotates with the housing 51.

In the operation of myimproved pick counter resetting mechanism, it will be noted that when the counter is unlocked and the locking bar 6 is in the-dotted ,lineposition shown in Fig. 6, the rotation ofthe wing nut '1 causes the housing 51 to rotate and rotate with it, as a unit, the friction plate 53, friction disc '59, and shaft 3 to cause the slot '9 in shaft '3-to pick up the resetting pawls 10 of "the several counting units 'and return them tozero. When, however, the bar is moved to the position shown in full lines in Fig. 6, in which the flat facesZii are in'engagement with the flat faces 2''! of the rotatable locking members, the shafts 3 are held by-these locking members against rotation, and rotation of-the wing nuts I will cause the projections 54 on the friction plate 53 to be cammed out .of the recesses 5!; the spring 56 yieldingto permit rotation of the friction plate relative to the *friction disc 53. It will be noted that the wingnut 1 can be rotated in either direction when the counter is locked and that a blow struck on wing put 1 in either direction of rotation will not transmit sufficient torque to the shaft .3 to jump ahead any counting wheel even if the pawl 16 of that wheel should happen to be in the groove 5!.

As aresult of my improved construction, both when the counter is locked and when it is unlocked, the counting wheels cannot be advanced by a blow struck on the wing nut l. Assuming the counting wheels to be in their zero position just followingresettingit will be evident that if a blow is struck on the wing nut in an attempt to advance a counting wheel without advancing the resetting shaft, any blow which is sufficient to overcome the inertia of the clutches of the counting Wheels will first result in slipping the friction plate 53 over the friction disc 58; the construction of the projections 54 being such that a normal turning torque on the wing nut I will be transmitted to the reset shaft 3 by means of the cooperating friction plate and friction disc, while any suddenly applied force, as a blow, will result in camming the projections 54 out of the recesses 5|. Thus, with the inertia of the clutch C less than the inertia of the clutches in the counting units, it is impossible under any circumstances to advance the counting wheels by a blow on the wing nut I. This is partly due to the arcuate configuration of the projections 54 and the bevel of the Walls 52 of the cooperating recess 5!, and partly due to the removal of the tops of these projections to form the flat portions 55. As a result of the latter, the cooperating plate and disc will transmit manual rotation of the wing nut 1, but the friction plate will slip relative to the friction disc 50 before the tension of spring 56 has greatly increased due to its compression. This results in making the clutch C very sensitive to forces applied by a blow.

While I have in this application specifically described one embodiment which my invention may assume in practice, it will be understood that the same is shown for purposes of illustration and that my invention may be modified and embodied in various other forms without departing from its spirit or the scope of the appended claim.

I claim as my invention:

In a pick counter, a resetting shaft; a plurality of counter units of successive order rotatably mounted on said shaft and each having a numeral wheel, a driven gear, and a ratchet clutch between the wheel and the driven gear; reset pawls carried by said wheels and adapted to cooperate with said shaft when the latter is turned in a resetting direction, a transfer pinion between adjacent units, an operating member rotatably mounted on one end of said shaft for turning the latter in a resetting direction to effect a resetting operation of said Wheels, and a resetting clutch between said operating member and shaft and including two clutch members respectively connected to the operating member and. shaft for rotation therewith, one of said clutch members having recesses and the other of said members having arcuate projections normally engaging in said recesses, and a spring for resiliently urging said clutch'members into engagement with one another with such pressure that when the operating member is rotated manually during a resetting operation the clutch will remain in normal engaged position to transmit a resetting torque to the shaft and when a sudden sharp blow is imparted to the operating member the projections will ride out of said recess without exerting a sufliciently sustained transmission torque to overcome the friction of the ratchet clutches and the tendency of the wheels to remain at rest.

HARVEY L. SPAUNBURG. 

